Meeting Minutes


HAMMOCK BEACH ESTATES HOMEOWNER’S ASSOCIATION P.O. BOX 350668

PALM COAST, FLORIDA 32135

 

Minutes of the Board of Directors Meeting

Time 5:00 p.m. August  31, 2011

Place: HOA Poolside

Call to Order and Adoption of Minutes

The president called the meeting to order at 5:01 p.m.

All four board members were present.

Association members present included:

Harold Clarke, John Bonner, Dave Miller, Marie Miller, Patti McGuiness, Debbie Healey, Lou Ciasulli, Frank Carelli, Susan Fairley, Darcy Araya, Tony Vergerano

Approval of Meeting Agenda

There were no additions or corrections to the meeting agenda.

Reading of the Minutes

Sara Clarke moved to waive reading of the minutes of the BOD special meeting held July 12, 2011. Pete Healey seconded. Motion passed.

Nominating Committee

Volunteers for the 2011 nominating committee were board members Sara Clarke and Pete Healey, and HOA member Harold Clarke.  Submission of nominees for the 2012 HBEHOA board is required by the next regularly scheduled board meeting, which will be held Tuesday, October 11th.

C&R Revisions

Michele Austin retyped and made copies of the proposed revised HBEHOA Covenants and Restrictions, which were distributed to meeting attendees.  Two key changes in the C&Rs were discussed: 

1)              the addition of a clause requiring board approval of yard design prior to changing from lawn to Florida friendly landscaping, and

2)              an amendment which allows the HOA to approve revision of one article, section, topic, etc, at a time of the C&R document, rather than requiring approval of the entire body of the C&Rs each time an individual item requires revision.

Bob Hamby will send a copy of the proposed revised C&Rs to each HOA member via email for review prior to the October 11th meeting.

Bob Hamby requested approval of the board to forward a copy of the revised C&R document to HOA attorney Dennis Bayer for legal review.  Sara made a motion that the Board authorizes Bob Hamby to do so.  Michele Austin seconded.  Motion passed.  Bob Hamby will send a copy of the proposed revised C&Rs to each HOA member via email for review after review after input from HOA attorney.

 

Formal Board Adopted Rules

Bob Hamby suggested making all previously adopted rules into a reference book for ease of access.  He asked for input from the HOA regarding adoption of a rules reference book. 

Bob suggested that today's date, August 31, 2011, be the starting point for the Formal Rules book, rather than digging through years of HOA meeting minutes to find previously adopted rules.  The following implementing Procedure was proposed by Bob Hamby.

Hammock Beach Estates Homeowners Association Rules and Regulations

Hammock Beach Estates Homeowners Association (HBEHOA) is operated by a Board of Directors (BOD) elected by Association membership.  The BOD operates, manages and maintains the Association neighborhood and Association owned properties by implementing, administering, enforcing, and interpreting the HBEHOA Declaration of Covenants, Restrictions, and Easements and BYLAWS.   The Association is authorized to issue these Rules and Regulations to implement these functions. 

 

To maximize the opportunity for general Membership input the following procedure for proposing, considering, and adopting any such Rule or Regulation will be utilized.

1.  Any proposed Rule or Regulation shall be submitted to BOD in writing before a scheduled BOD meeting.

2.  A discussion and reading of such proposed Rule or Regulation shall included on the BOD Meeting Agenda and discussed at the meeting.  This rule will be sent to Association members for review and input and include for a second review and discussion on the next BOD meeting.

3.  After the second review, discussion, and any necessary amendment the proposed Rule or Regulation will be included in the next BOD Meeting for Final vote.

 

Sara Clarke made a motion to adopt the implementing Procedure and to create a reference book of Formal Board Adopted Rules.  Pete Healey seconded.  Motion passed.

Florida Friendly Landscaping

A committee of three HOA members - Sara Clarke, Michele Austin, and Debbie Clark - met to discuss creation of a guideline for Florida friendly landscaping on HOA member properties.  The following guideline was submitted for HOA member review prior to the October 11, 2011 meeting which will be the second reading in accordance with Procedure adopted above.  Voting on this rule will then occur at the next scheduled Board meeting:

All homeowners choosing not to install or maintain a lawn must submit a design to the Board of Directors for pre-approval.  Diagram must indicate areas of greenery, stone, mulch or other materials to be used. Florida friendly landscapes must include permanent plantings of at least 30% of total front yard square footage.  Permanent retaining borders must be installed to contain landscape materials and prevent spillage onto adjacent lots. Non-planted areas of landscape must be kept free of weeds.

Find information regarding Florida friendly plants at www.floridayards.org/fyplants/index.php

  

 

Pool Rules

A rough draft of suggested pool rules was compiled by a committee of three HOA members - Sara Clarke, Michele Austin, and Debbie Clark.  Sara Clarke passed out copies of suggested pool rules and asked for member input.  After much discussion, the following set of rules was tentatively agreed upon.  The following guideline was submitted for HOA member review prior to the October 11, 2011 meeting which will be the second reading in accordance with Procedure adopted above.  Voting on this rule will then occur at the next scheduled Board meeting:

ADDENDUM TO HBEHOA POOL RULES - FOR PARTIES

1)              Requests for pool parties must be submitted in writing, no less than thirty  (30) days prior to the event.  The HOA Board of Directors will respond to requests no later than seven (7) days after receipt of request. 

2)              Any gathering shall be limited to a maximum of twenty (20) guests, including host's family members.

3)              Host must sign a waiver releasing the HOA from any and all liability for bodily injury to attendees.  The waiver must be witnessed by a Board Member.

4)              No pool party may be scheduled on a recognized holiday, or holiday weekend.

5)              A maximum of one (1) party per day will be allowed.  Duration of party is not to exceed three (3) hours, including set up and clean up.

6)              A maximum of two (2) parties per year will be allowed per homeowner(s)/address.

7)              Pool grounds, pool area, and bathrooms must be clean and free of debris and trash before leaving the premises.  Hosting homeowner is responsible for clean up.

8)              Notice will be posted at the pool three (3) weeks in advance of approved private parties. Hosting homeowner will be provided with with an emblem to hang on the pool door during the party, designating that a private party is underway.  No uninvited HOA member may use the pool during private parties.

9)              Failure to obtain pre-approval and/or to follow all pool rules will result in a fine of $250 being assessed to the lot owner.

 

Sign Considerations

Bob Hamby turned the meeting over to Sara Clarke and requested permission to speak regarding traffic signs.  Bob then read the C&Rs regarding traffic control signs.

Several HOA members expressed concerns about speeding in the neighborhood and asked that the board request more traffic control signs be erected by the county, now that Flagler County owns HOA roads. 

Harold Clarke and Bob Hamby pointed out that the minimum speed limit in Flagler County is 30 mph, not 25 mph as is posted in Hammock Beach Estates, and that if the county were to add signs, they would likely indicate a 30 mph speed limit.

Harold Clarke suggested sending a letter to Flagler County thanking them for taking over HBEHOA roads and for making repairs.  Bob Hamby indicated that he has already sent a personal thank you via email to Craig Coffee, Flagler County Administrator.

Members asked that the county be made aware of additional road problems which have not yet been repaired, including the cul de sac on Cottonwood Trail  and at the intersection of Cottonwood and Solee Road.

Tony Vergerano was appointed to work with Pete Healey regarding procurement of a “Slow, Children at Play” sign, to be placed in front of the Vergerano residence on Mahoe Drive.

Bob Hamby moved that the board authorize research of price comparison, purchase and placement of said sign.  Michele Austin seconded.  Motion passed.

Due to a recent incident where an attempt was made to bar access to the HBEHOA dune walkover, Bob Hamby suggested discussion re installation of a dune walkover sign to protect the board's legal position regarding access for HOA members.  After member input, it was agreed that signs should be placed at both the east and west ends of the HBEHOA dune walkover which read “Private – Armand Beach Residents Only.”  Susan Fairley commented that erecting the signs would be a good move on the part of the HOA to make an effort to remove the adversarial attitude between the lot owner and the board.  

Sara Clarke made a motion that the HOA have signs made for placement at both ends of the dune walkover.  Michele Austin seconded.  Motion passed.

Pete Healey mentioned that the west side of the dune walkover needed attention and requested that the board approve funds to purchase more landscape rocks.  Michele Austin made a motion to authorize purchase.  Sara Clarke seconded.  Motion passed

New Business

Sara Clarke brought up the ongoing problem HBEHOA is having the past several years in getting members to volunteer for elected office and committees.  Fewer people are willing to serve, and the ones who do are unfairly doing the majority of the work.  Sara mentioned that she has recently investigated the possibility of an outside property management firm to deal with the day to day business of HBEHOA.   A St. Augustine Beach firm charges $7 monthly per lot, or $84 per year, to do all mailings, all copying, letters (non-compliance, dues notices, etc), maintenance arrangements, accounting, attorney contacts, etc.  Bob Hamby indicated that we are evaluating the amount needed to collect for Association to assure that collection for accrual accounts is adequate but not excessive.  Depending on the results of that evaluation, it might not be necessary to raise dues $84 to accommodate the additional cost of hiring a property manager if the need for accrual funds collected for 2011 can be reduced for future collections.

Susan Fairley suggested that more HOA members might be willing to volunteer for board and committee positions if an outside firm handled the day to day business. 

Bob Hamby suggested that we obtain bids for outside property management services.  Sara Clarke suggested that a representative of a property management firm appear at the November meeting to answer HOA member questions.   Sara will work on obtaining bids and securing a representative for an in-person appearance.

 

After it was determined that there was no other business to be addressed, Sara Clarke  moved to adjourn the meeting. Michele Austin seconded. The meeting was adjourned at 6:25 p.m.